The Texas State Board of Education on Wednesday delayed an initial vote on a proposed required reading list that includes several Bible passages, including some featured in the controversial, state-approved Bluebonnet reading program that some districts have adopted.

Members of the public who spoke on the issue were overwhelmingly opposed to the state’s proposed list, citing a lack of diverse authors and the religious texts among the reasons.

“What I see is an overemphasis on the Christian tradition without providing the kind of contextualization and analysis that religious texts require,” said Steven Mintz, a history professor at the University of Texas at Austin.

In April, the board will discuss both Commissioner Mike Morath’s聽proposed聽list and an alternative, shorter list offered by Board Member Will Hickman. His list also includes some biblical texts, including the Good Samaritan, the parable of the Prodigal Son and the story of the tower of Babel.

“These are common stories that are, what I would say, part of cultural literacy,” he said.

When Texas approved a new reading curriculum that features Bible stories in 2024, education Commissioner Mike Morath told districts they could adopt it, reject it or even adapt it to their own local needs.

But a proposed statewide reading list, which relies on some of the same biblical lessons, would not be optional.

The selections, part of a longer list that also features scripture passages for and students, include Jesus鈥� parable of the Prodigal Son for first graders and a third grade text on the Apostle Paul鈥檚 conversion to Christianity. Those are among the stories that the agency published from the Bluebonnet reading curriculum, a spokesman said.

The proposed reading list, which includes classics from Shakespeare and Poe and the writings of historical figures, is scheduled for a preliminary vote by the Texas State Board of Education Wednesday.

One of the criticisms of the religious lessons in Bluebonnet is that they largely present an evangelical Christian perspective 鈥� an attribute the reading list shares, said David Brockman, a religion and public policy scholar at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy.

鈥淎s with the Bluebonnet curriculum, this one-sided focus on the Bible conveys, intentionally or unintentionally, the message that the biblical tradition is more important and more worthy of attention than other religions,鈥� he said. 鈥淭his message in turn threatens to turn students, parents, and teachers who are not Christians or Jews into outsiders in their own public schools.鈥� 

The state board narrowly approved the reading program in late 2024 after months of debate between Christian conservatives and those who argue that it emphasizes Christianity over other religions and could be used to proselytize elementary school children. The curriculum is one of several ways the state has tried to heighten students鈥� exposure to the Bible, knowledge that Morath says will improve overall reading performance. Bluebonnet, and now the reading list, have received praise from those advocating for a classical curriculum focused on Western culture. 

鈥淭his is the revolution America needs,鈥� Jeremy Wayne Tate, founder of the Classical Learning Test, an SAT and ACT alternative, . 

Because of student mobility, there is a need for a 鈥渃ommon literary canon,鈥� according to . 鈥淲hen students switch schools, they will often read the same text twice or skip a text entirely due to local grade level selection differences.鈥�

A requirement that the state include 鈥渞eligious literature,鈥� in the curriculum has been for years. Some districts met that standard by offering standalone elective courses on the Old and New Testaments in high school. In last fall, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said the state board could also comply by integrating religious topics into other subjects, like language arts. 

The reading list would include a kindergarten passage on the Golden Rule, which emphasizes Jesus鈥� Sermon on the Mount, where he instructed followers to 鈥渄o unto others as you would have done unto you.鈥� After a backlash, the state added references to similar lessons from other faiths. In first grade, there鈥檚 a book on America鈥檚 symbols, which also highlights connections to scripture.

鈥楶arents have every right鈥� 

Most districts in the state didn鈥檛 rush to adopt the curriculum, despite incentives from the state of up to $60 per student. A state database last summer showed that fewer than 200 of the state鈥檚 more than 1,200 districts and charters had ordered the reading materials, many of them smaller districts. Others adopted the program but discarded the religion-related lessons. 

In a , the Texas Freedom Network, which has been critical of including Bible lessons in the curriculum, showed that just 17 of the state鈥檚 100 largest districts adopted it and were often slow to order the materials. The Fort Worth schools, now under state takeover, will begin implementing it this fall. 

Since last fall, the 72,000-student Conroe district, near Houston, has been fielding requests from parents to opt their children out of some of the biblical material. Parents are required to submit a request in writing to a teacher or school administrator, but officials told 社区黑料 that they鈥檙e not keeping track of how many requests they’ve received. Last fall, one parent told board members that creating alternate lessons is adding to teachers鈥� workload. 

鈥淧arents have every right to opt their children out of this,鈥� Destinee Milton, who has a second grader and a fifth grader in the district, . Because the religious material is part of the same book as the rest of the lessons, 鈥渢eachers are now required to spend their planning time鈥� pasting in alternate content.

Mark Brooks, whose third grader attends Colin Powell Elementary in Conroe, asked that she be excused from lessons on Christianity and its influence on the Roman Empire. 

鈥淚 don’t think religion belongs in public schools,鈥� he said. But the school seemed unprepared for how to handle the request. The district didn鈥檛 reply to a request for comment.

鈥淲e asked the teacher; the teacher didn’t really know. We talked to the principal; the principal didn’t really know,鈥� he said. They eventually relocated his daughter to a separate room where she worked on a lesson about the roads that led to Rome, also part of Bluebonnet. 

Brooks said his daughter liked the alternate lesson because she finished it quickly and had more time for independent reading. He鈥檚 not opposed, he said, to brief mentions of religion in school, but described a passage on the Christian emperor Constantine crediting God with his success as a ruler as 鈥渨ay over the top.鈥�

Mark Chancey, a religious studies professor at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, said that if the board approves the reading list, it鈥檚 鈥渙nly a matter of time before parents begin to opt their children out of these lessons鈥� in districts statewide. He cited a Supreme Court ruling last year that upheld parents鈥� rights to keep their children from participating in lessons focused on LGBTQ-related story books for religious reasons. He expects parents to exercise those same rights when it comes to religious material. 

鈥淚t’s going to be classroom chaos,鈥� he said. 

Supporters of the program argue that the Bible is a foundational document that should be taught in public schools and is necessary to understand historical references and works of literature. The Supreme Court, they say, erred in 1963 when it that mandated prayer and Bible readings violated the First Amendment.

鈥淚t will be impossible for Texas students to understand settlement in America, the Revolution, the Constitution, or the rest of American and World history, let alone literature, without knowledge of the Bible,鈥� said Matthew McCormick, education director for the , a conservative think tank. 鈥淢any schools are countering what they see as favor to Christianity with what looks a lot like anti-Christian bias, but this is a disservice to the education of their students.鈥�

Survey responses from teachers, collected through a link in a Bluebonnet Facebook group, show that educators remain divided on the religious components after several months of teaching the program. 

鈥淚 am a non-Christian being forced to give sermons in class,鈥� one teacher wrote. 鈥淣o consideration was given to the rights of teachers and students of various backgrounds with this curriculum.鈥�

But another said there鈥檚 a way to teach the material without trying to influence what students think.

鈥淚f I present something as, 鈥楾his is what this group of people believe and your family can discuss what you believe at home,鈥� it鈥檚 OK,鈥� the teacher explained. 鈥淚 wasn鈥檛 thrilled with the additions, but I had to put myself in the mindset of 鈥業t鈥檚 a story from a religion. I鈥檓 not teaching it as fact.鈥� 鈥�

Rep. James Talarico had concerns.

The third-term legislator from Round Rock, near Austin, pointed Morath to a lesson on the Sermon on the Mount 鈥� Jesus鈥檚 instruction to 鈥渄o unto others as you would have done unto you.鈥�

The text makes only passing reference to similar messages in and , and never mentions that taught a version of the Golden Rule 600 years earlier. 

鈥淚 think it’s pretty egregious and will shock a lot of Texans,鈥� Talarico said of the curriculum.

If it seems strange that four paragraphs about an ancient text in for kindergartners arouses such passions, welcome to the latest Texas-sized controversy about Christianity in the classroom.

Talarico is not just a Democrat in a deeply red state, but a former middle school English teacher and a seminary student studying to be a Presbyterian minister. Morath, he said, agreed the new material doesn鈥檛 grant 鈥渆qual time鈥� to other religions. 鈥淚 thought that was a fundamental flaw in this curriculum. He did not.鈥�

As parents, academics and activists begin to pore over the thousands of pages the education department released, Morath鈥檚 acknowledgement sheds light on the state鈥檚 approach. 

The new curriculum is based on the increasingly popular notion of 鈥渃lassical education,鈥� which stresses the primacy of the Judeo-Christian tradition in shaping Western literature and U.S. history. As 社区黑料 first reported last week, the project won praise from conservatives and parents who want students to get more rigorous reading material. Connecting coursework to ancient texts, including the Bible, offers students a cultural vocabulary they鈥檒l need to tackle more complex assignments in middle and high school, Morath said.

He downplayed the religious material as a 鈥渟mall piece鈥� of the curriculum, and called the biblical lessons

But a review by 社区黑料 shows that biblical figures and stories are central to multiple lessons across the 62 K-5 units. The curriculum not only gives short shrift to other religions 鈥� Muhammad appears to have escaped mention, despite his role in shaping a faith practiced by half a million Texans 鈥� but scholars who have examined the material say it offers a decidedly Christian interpretation of history, particularly the story of America鈥檚 founding and civil rights struggles.  

A textual guide for a third-grade unit on recommends teachers play 鈥淪ilent Night鈥� or 鈥淎way in the Manger鈥� as they begin a lesson on the life of Jesus 鈥� from his birth and ministry to Crucifixion and Resurrection. In addition to a smattering of New Testament vocabulary (鈥渕essiah,鈥� 鈥渄isciple鈥�) students get what appears to be a factual account from Josephus, a first century historian, on Christ鈥檚 death: Jesus鈥檚 disciples reported that he 鈥渁ppeared to them three days after his crucifixion and that he was alive.鈥�

But scholars overwhelmingly the authenticity of this account, which they say was likely added by medieval clerics more than a thousand years later in an attempt to prove Christ鈥檚 deity.

鈥淭o use this as historical proof, which is exactly how it is presented in this lesson, is quite unwarranted and specious,鈥� said L. Michael White, a biblical scholar at the University of Texas-Austin.

In keeping with classical education鈥檚 focus on religious allusions, that lesson sets the stage for a fifth grade study of C.S. Lewis鈥檚 The celebrated fantasy tells the story of four siblings who evacuate to the English countryside during World War II. They emerge through a magical armoire to encounter Aslan, a noble lion who later sacrifices himself for one of the children and returns from the dead. 

The teacher鈥檚 guide calls it a 鈥渂iblical allegory.鈥� 

鈥淓xplain how the Old Testament of the Bible had many prophecies about a future savior that are written as fulfilled in the New Testament by Jesus,鈥� the note says. 鈥淭here are also prophecies in the New Testament by Jesus. There are prophecies in the Bible about a future where Jesus returns to the world to make wrong right.鈥�

Those instructions alarm one prominent education figure. In the early 1990s, Sandy Kress helped develop an accountability system for Texas schools that inspired No Child Left Behind, the landmark federal education law. Kress, who is Jewish, later advised George W. Bush when the former governor became president.

鈥淚 would argue this is teaching Christianity,鈥� said Kress. His school reform days behind him, Kress now teaches and funds projects that encourage between Christians and Jews.

Morath鈥檚 staff called on Kress for guidance on the curriculum last year, and on his advice, recruited his rabbi to review earlier drafts of the material. Kress told 社区黑料 that he wants further revisions and is hopeful the state will consider them.

鈥淐an Christians do this in a way that is respectful of other faiths 鈥� without feeling the need to prove Christian doctrine? That’s the test for them,鈥� Kress said. 鈥淲hether they pass the test or not will prove whether this is an honorable exercise and whether it would be able to survive a constitutional challenge.鈥�

State officials declined to comment on their dealings with Kress and Talarico. In a statement, Morath said the biblical material in the curriculum 鈥渄oes not include religious lessons as one would find in a religious school.鈥� He added that the content reflects 鈥渧arious religious traditions鈥� and that 鈥渟tudents will learn about aspects of most major world religions.鈥�

But in response to criticism, education officials promised to add 鈥渓anguage from the First Amendment鈥� on the need for a clear separation between church and state to its lessons on American history.

The public has to comment on the proposed curriculum, which goes to the state Board of Education for approval in November. The stakes are high. If adopted, the curriculum would instantly become not only the nation鈥檚 largest classical education model, but the biggest infusion of Judeo-Christian teachings into the public education system in decades. The state is encouraging districts to adopt the material by offering incentives of up to $60 per student.

To Morath, the new curriculum offers schools their best chance at raising reading scores in a state that saw during the pandemic. In addition to phonics-based instruction in the early grades, the curriculum draws from history, science and the arts to boost students鈥� knowledge of the world. While the biblical material has drawn the most attention, there are many units that have no religious references and highlight famous Texans, like civil rights leader and Black-Native American aviator . Students learn best, Morath said, when they get early and repeated exposure to a subject.

鈥淲hen you’re designing elementary reading materials, you have to pick topics and stick with them for a few weeks,鈥� he told 社区黑料. In districts that have piloted some of the material over the past three years, 鈥渢he vocabulary complexity is night and day different鈥� than some of the more simplistic reading lessons teachers used before, he said.

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush Texas on offering districts 鈥渞ich content based on the science of reading and not outdated practices,鈥� while and classical education advocates brushed off concerns that the materials have too many biblical references.  

The Texas curriculum 鈥渟trikes me as a rather mild step in the right direction,鈥� said John Peterson, a humanities professor at the University of Dallas. For years, he said, 鈥渁nything passingly biblical [has been] treated as a form of pornography, something filthy and shameful, and only to be consumed in private.鈥�

鈥榋ero reference points鈥�

Jeremy Tate knows firsthand how difficult it can be to engage students who lack a basic knowledge of the Bible. When he taught Geoffrey Chaucer鈥檚 The Canterbury Tales to 10th graders in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, they had 鈥渮ero reference points鈥� for the collection of stories told by medieval pilgrims on their way to Canterbury Cathedral.

Some students didn鈥檛 have any knowledge of the Bible, let alone 鈥渁nything about a pilgrimage, a relic or any of the language that was so much a part of the vernacular,鈥� said Tate, now CEO of the , an alternative college entrance exam.

He鈥檚 concerned, however, about the classical movement being 鈥減olitically hijacked鈥� by Republicans trying to appeal to conservative Christians.

鈥淚n some ways, it’s an impossible battle,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e’re living through a moment where very few people can think outside of political categories.鈥�

As if to underscore that point, the new curriculum arrived just four days after the state鈥檚 Republican party unified behind calling for mandatory 鈥渋nstruction on the Bible, servant leadership, and Christian self-governance.鈥� Delegates also want students to study an from Thomas Jefferson that use to argue that church-state separation is a myth. 

鈥楥ultural heritage鈥�

That approach contrasts with Morath鈥檚 more measured admonitions to those who reviewed the materials. The commissioner鈥檚 charge to a 10-member advisory board at their first meeting last summer was to 鈥渕ake sure we were on the side of literature as opposed to a worshipful treatment of that material,鈥� said Marvin McNeese Jr., an adviser who teaches at the College of Biblical Studies in Houston, an orthodox school that he said takes a 鈥渢raditional interpretation of the Bible.鈥�

The volunteers included some recognizable names, like former GOP presidential candidate Dr. Ben Carson, who served as a cabinet member during the Trump administration, and Danica McKellar, and mathematician who has been outspoken about her faith.

McNeese said he spent about 40 hours between August and February reviewing lessons and doesn鈥檛 see a problem with its Judeo-Christian emphasis. 

鈥淚t’s because of our own cultural heritage,鈥� he said. 鈥淎ll the stories that I read directly explain something that students may very well come across. I mean, we have laws named Good Samaritan laws.鈥�

Under federal law, schools can teach the Bible as literature, but not in a devotional way. Mandatory Bible readings and prayer were common in many public schools until a series of in the early 1960s ended those practices. The court, however, allows voluntary prayer and under its current conservative majority has increasingly tilted in favor of religious expression. 

Conflicts about biblical material in public school have recently erupted over Bible verses in a Florida and in an that posted a New Testament verse on a hallway wall. But experts say the scope of Texas鈥檚 undertaking increases the potential for trouble.   

The Bible references in the new curriculum start in kindergarten, when children draw pictures inspired by the creation story in the Book of Genesis. By fifth grade, students studying poetry ponder what King David meant in Psalm 23 when he wrote, 鈥淭he Lord is my shepherd.鈥� In between are familiar Bible stories about the wisdom of King Solomon, the prodigal son and Paul鈥檚 conversion to Christianity on the road to Damascus.

The Texas lessons frequently say 鈥渁ccording to the Bible鈥� or 鈥渁s the Bible explains,鈥� but Mark Chancey, a religious studies professor at Southern Methodist University, dismissed those as 鈥渕eager efforts鈥� at objectivity. 鈥淭he literalistic way they present Bible stories encourages very young children to simply take them at face value,鈥� he said. 

He pointed to a fifth grade lesson on Leonardo da Vinci鈥檚 鈥淟ast Supper鈥� in which teachers read a passage from the Book of Matthew for added context. Students, he said, are bound to be left with questions. 

“How did Jesus know someone would betray him? What does Jesus mean when [the teacher] says the bread is his body and the cup is his blood?” Chancey asked. 鈥淚s the teacher ready to explain all the different versions of Eucharistic theology found in different forms of Christianity?鈥�

Many of those teachers have probably never received training on how to discuss religion in a public school classroom, said Kate Soules, founder and director of the Religion and Education Collaborative, which focuses on how schools talk about matters of faith. Teachers might be better off focusing on the literary value of Lewis鈥檚 鈥淐hronicles of Narnia鈥� than prompting students to think Aslan, the lion, represents Jesus, she said. Teachers could 鈥渧ery quickly end up in violation of the First Amendment.鈥�

The tone and focus is a concerted departure from the curriculum Amplify, a leading publisher, offered the state in 2020 under a $19 million contract. In over 40 pages, that version gives to Christianity, Islam and Judaism. A separate unit features on Hinduism, Buddhism and Confucianism.

The state, however, rejected those sections, said Amplify officials, who later balked when Texas asked for additional biblical content. As 社区黑料 previously reported, the company opted not to bid on a contract for the next phase of the project. 

Experts say the current curriculum is notable not only for its emphasis on Christianity, but for what it omits. 

A first grade lesson on American independence, Chancey said, paints an idealistic picture of religious liberty by asserting different denominations 鈥渢hrived in the colonies.鈥� In reality, pilgrims were often intolerant of . 

The program devotes ample space to the evangelism of the colonists during a period of religious revival known as the Great Awakening. But 社区黑料鈥檚 review found no material on the considerable influence of thinkers from the Enlightenment, a concurrent intellectual movement that inspired the writings of early American thinkers on individual rights and church-state separation. 

鈥楤oth sides of that debate鈥�

That stained glass lens extends to the Civil Rights era. In both second and fifth grade, the text emphasizes the Christian faith of Black leaders as key to the movement to end segregation. But there鈥檚 no mention of who used the Bible to justify racism and Jim Crow laws, like Henry Lyon Jr., who that God 鈥渟tarted separation of the races.鈥�

鈥淚f you just portray that religious leaders were against segregation, that’s extremely misleading,鈥� Chancey said. 鈥淵ou had religious leaders on both sides of that debate.鈥� 

An assignment on points fifth graders to Martin Luther King Jr.鈥檚 biblical allusions, including the persecution of early Christians and Jews who refused to worship false idols. But it ignores King’s intended audience 鈥� “white moderate” preachers “who have never felt the stinging darts of segregation.” 

鈥淒r. King鈥檚 focus was the incompatibility of racial segregation with Judeo-Christian values and the Christian faith,鈥� said Raymond Pierce, president and CEO of the Southern Education Foundation, a nonprofit focused on equity. 

Pierce has a divinity degree, leads a Sunday school class and teaches political theology at Duke University. His family tree extends back through the founding of the Black Pentecostal Church in the early 1900s. 鈥淚t does not get much more fundamental than that,鈥� he quipped.

But he’s also a civil rights attorney. In reviewing excerpts from the curriculum for 社区黑料, Pierce found himself turning to to Virginia lawmakers in 1785. Madison wrote that while Christians fought for their own religious liberty, they could not 鈥渄eny an equal freedom to those whose minds have not yet yielded to the evidence which has convinced us.鈥� 

Those who support the Texas curriculum are 鈥減ushing a warped version of Judeo-Christian principles,鈥� Pierce said. 鈥淚t is quite troubling that these supporters either intentionally or naively want to bring divisive issues within the Christian Church into our public schools.鈥�   

To share tips on Texas鈥檚 proposed reading curriculum, contact Linda Jacobson at lrjacobson@proton.me.

From the story of Queen Esther 鈥� who convinced her husband, the Persian king, to spare the Jews 鈥� to the depiction of Christ’s last supper, the material is designed to draw connections between classroom content and religious texts.

鈥淚f you’re reading classic works of American literature, there are often religious allusions in that literature,鈥� state education Commissioner Mike Morath told 社区黑料. 鈥淎ny changes being made are to reinforce the kind of background knowledge on these seminal works of the American cultural experience.鈥� 

With the potential to reach over 2 million K鈥�5 students in the nation鈥檚 second-largest state, the update marks a big step in a movement embraced by conservatives to root young people鈥檚 education in what they consider traditional values. But it鈥檚 bound to raise questions about the potential for religious indoctrination in a state that has been a battleground for such disputes. Last year, for example, Texas passed a law allowing to work as school counselors.

鈥淚t is reasonable to devote some attention to [the Bible], and state education standards across the nation often require such attention,鈥� said Mark Chancey, a religious studies professor at Southern Methodist University in Dallas. 鈥淭he problem, of course, is that sometimes the legitimate reason of cultural literacy is used as a smokescreen to hide religious and ideological agendas.鈥�

In an interview with a Christian talk show, GOP , who describes himself as a 鈥�,鈥� praised the curriculum changes, saying they will 鈥済et us back to teaching, not necessarily the Bible per se, but the stories from the Bible.鈥�

The release comes four days after the state Republican party calling on the legislature and the state Board of Education to require instruction on the Bible. Texas education department officials declined to comment on the platform and have emphasized that the new curriculum includes material from other faiths.

While largely hidden from public view, the redesign sparked behind-the-scenes debate long before its release. When a leading curriculum publisher balked at the state鈥檚 request to infuse its offerings with biblical content, Texas officials turned to other vendors. They include conservative Christian in Michigan and the right-leaning Texas Public Policy Foundation, which an unsuccessful to require the 10 Commandments in every classroom, according to a list obtained by 社区黑料.

鈥楪reat works of literature鈥�

Going far beyond typical reading and writing fundamentals, the new lessons draw on history, science and the arts 鈥� 鈥渨hat many people call this classical model of education,鈥� Morath said.

To understand 鈥�,鈥� a book about a Jewish family hiding in Denmark during World War II, he said students should understand more about 鈥淛ewish cultural practices鈥� and 鈥渢he vilification of this ethnic minority.鈥� 

A unit on 鈥淔ighting for a Cause,鈥� one of several that officials shared with 社区黑料, includes the Old Testament story of Esther and how she and her cousin Mordecai 鈥渇ought for what they knew was right and made a difference that not only affected the Jews of Persia but also Jewish people today.鈥�

The mentions range in size from a page on Esther to a few paragraphs about Samuel Adams at the Continental Congress. His plea to fellow delegates to pray together, despite religious differences, is offered as a first-grade vocabulary lesson on the word 鈥渃ompromise.鈥� 

Fifth graders are asked to read Martin Luther King Jr.鈥檚 鈥�.鈥� Written after his 1963 arrest for leading a , King compared his act of civil disobedience to the 鈥渞efusal of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego to obey the laws of Nebuchadnezzar鈥� in the Book of Daniel.

鈥淚f you don’t know who Nebuchadnezzar is, you don’t know what [King鈥檚] talking about,鈥� Morath said. 鈥淗ow do you make sure that you can unlock in the minds of our kids their ability to wrestle with 鈥� ideas that have surfaced in great works of literature?鈥� 

Not just literature, but art. A lesson on 鈥淭he Last Supper,鈥� da Vinci鈥檚 Renaissance masterpiece, points fifth graders to the New Testament. 

鈥淭he Bible explains that Jesus knew that after this meal, he would be arrested, put on trial, and killed,鈥� the text reads. 鈥淟et鈥檚 read the story in the book of Matthew to see for ourselves what unfolded during the supper.鈥�

While drawing parallels to religious texts, Morath said the lessons would respect bright lines regarding the separation of church and state.

鈥淭his is still a curriculum for public school and we’ve designed it to be appropriate in that setting,鈥� he said. 

New religious-related material in a proposed Texas elementary school reading program includes Old Testament references to the Liberty Bell, an exploration of the meaning of the Jewish holiday Purim and the story of Christ’s last supper. (Texas Education Agency)

The role of Amplify

The redesign builds on a $19 million m delivered during the pandemic by Amplify, a based in New York.

Roughly 400 districts have used their materials since 2021. Some teachers give them high marks for building students鈥� and comprehension. But not everyone has been pleased. Last year, Morath who decried its emphasis on and minimal attention to Christianity.

鈥淭here’s one mention of Jesus, that he was a teacher a couple thousand years ago,鈥� said Jamie Haynes, who runs a on 鈥渃oncerning鈥� curriculum and library books. 鈥淭he only other time we can find God, our God 鈥� the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob 鈥� is in the American unit.鈥� 

The issue of how 鈥� and whether 鈥� to incorporate religious content was fraught long before the curriculum reached school districts.

State officials asked Amplify to provide a lesson on the story of Esther and suggested a unit on Exodus, said Alexandra Walsh, the company鈥檚 chief product officer.

While it had previously tweaked its curriculum for other states, Walsh said the company had never been asked to add biblical material. And when it suggested inserting content from other world religions, the state rejected the idea, said Amplify spokeswoman Kristine Frech.

鈥淭here was not much appetite for a variety of wisdom texts,鈥� she said. 鈥淭here was much more of an appetite for the tie to traditional Christian texts.鈥�

The company opted against bidding on a contract to provide additional revisions. In a statement, Texas education officials dismissed Amplify鈥檚 charge that they turned down material from other religions as 鈥渃ompletely false鈥� and stressed that the finished product “includes representation from multiple faiths.鈥� But the state declined to specify how many of the new lessons have religious themes or derive from Judeo-Christian sources.

In an interview with 社区黑料, Morath pointed to a World War II lesson that focuses on J. Robert Oppenheimer鈥檚 upon witnessing the explosion of the first atomic bomb in Los Alamos: 鈥淣ow, I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.鈥� The words, featured prominently in the recent Oscar-winning film, derive from the Bhagavad Gita, a Hindu scripture.   

Kindergarteners studying the Golden Rule would learn that the idea comes from the 鈥淐hristian Bible,鈥� according to the text, but that similar principles can be found in the 鈥渁ncient books鈥� of Islam and Hinduism. Another section on the Renaissance highlights Muslim settlers in Spain and their contributions to philosophy, poetry and astronomy.

鈥楤iblical literacy鈥�

After Amplify bowed out, the state an $84 million contract to the Boston-based Public Consulting Group to revise the curriculum.

For the reading program, the company worked closely with several authors who specialize in , including its role in westward expansion and launching the national space program, according to a list of vendors provided by the state.

But it also leaned on conservative organizations steeped in the culture wars. Contracts went to two officials at the Texas Public Policy Foundation: Courtnie Bagley, the think tank鈥檚 education director, and Thomas Lindsay, a higher education director and vocal opponent of . The foundation, which called the 10 Commandments bill an 鈥渋mportant step in bringing faith-based values back to the forefront of our society,鈥� declined to comment on their contributions. Public Consulting Group officials also did not respond to questions. 

Hillsdale, another vendor, is a major player in advancing classical education. It authored the , a civics and history model that emphasizes American exceptionalism and is a favorite of conservatives opposed to lessons on institutional racism. When the Florida Department of Education dozens of math textbooks in 2020, citing content influenced by critical race theory, a analysis showed two Hillsdale representatives objected to the proposed materials.

The state did not respond to questions on the role Hilldale and the Texas Public Policy Foundation played in the new curriculum. Hillsdale officials said they provided their feedback free of charge. 

鈥淗illsdale never profits from its work in K-12, nor does it accept one penny from federal, state or local taxpayers,鈥� said spokeswoman Emily Davis. She added, 鈥淩eligion is taught for the sake of cultural literacy, not to promote a particular religion.鈥� 

Originally the province of well-heeled private or parochial schools, classical education has blossomed in recent years both as a response to pandemic lockdowns and what some parents view as progressive trends in traditional public schools. The philosophy is rooted in the liberal arts and historical texts, with a sharp focus on the Greek and Roman foundations of Western civilization.

The movement entertains healthy debate about the role of religion, but most practitioners agree that giving students a strong body of knowledge requires the use of primary sources, including the Bible.

鈥淭hey’re going to need to have some biblical literacy, if only to interpret John Milton, or Dante or Shakespeare,鈥� said Robert Jackson, a senior research fellow with the at Florida鈥檚 Flagler College.

鈥楧evotional in nature鈥�

In Texas, the proposed changes would go far beyond any previous attempt to inject biblical content into its classrooms.

A allows school districts to offer high school electives on the Bible. Demand has been extremely low, however. According to the Texas Education Agency, just over 1,200 of the state鈥檚 1.7 million took the course this year.

But even with their limited scope and popularity, the courses offer ample fodder for skeptics. Writing for the Texas Freedom Network, a religious liberty and civil rights organization, Chancey, the Southern Methodist professor, the courses to be 鈥渆xplicitly devotional in nature.鈥� Despite requirements for teachers to complete special training and maintain 鈥渞eligious neutrality,鈥� Chancey wrote that the Protestant Bible was the preferred text in these courses, while Catholic, Hebrew and Eastern Orthodox Bibles were 鈥減resented as deviations from the norm.鈥� In several districts, the courses were taught by local ministers.

The state is now working with a much larger canvas: not a mere elective, but an entire elementary reading curriculum, with a potential audience of millions of students.

Officials are quick to point out that adoption of the new program is voluntary. But a potential $60 per-student it is offering for participation may make it difficult for school systems to refuse.

The updated materials are now open for public review and are scheduled to go before the state Board of Education for approval this fall. Aicha Davis, a Democrat on the Republican-led board, predicted 鈥渢hey would totally support something like that.鈥�

鈥淚t doesn鈥檛 surprise me that this is happening,鈥� she said.